Tuesday, March 13, 2007

Film festival in Southwest Virginia?

"The Top Ten Films in America Festival will be held in the mountains of southwestern Virginia in the Town of Fries and the City of Galax, April 19-22, 2007. The film festival is sponsored by the Town of Fries, The Galax City Department of Tourism, the Fries Recreation Center, The Carroll County Department of Tourism and the Drydock Film Corporation. Venues will include the Fries Theater in Fries and the famous REX Theater in Galax. There will be a separate acting competition during the film festival in which winners will have the opportunity to present their acting talents in front of film producers and talent agents. The film festival will showcase films in the categories of Feature Films, Short Films, and Documentaries with a special category for Foreign Films. As has been the tradition, the Backroads Radio Show will be broadcast from the REX Theatre on Friday night and film festival attendees will be able to sit in on the show which focuses on the best of mountain traditional and Bluegrass music. Film makers may submit directly from the festival web site or through Without A Box online.

Drydock Film Corporation, one of the film festival sponsors is also scheduled to have the Virginia Premiere of MORNING SONG WAY, during the festival on Friday April 20th in Fries and again on Saturday April 21st at the REX Theater in Galax. The film will be coming up from its Florida premiere at the Delray Beach Film Festival March 17th at 5:P.M. MORNING SONG WAY was the first production by the company which has produced two motion pictures in a little over a year both of which were filmed in Virginia and North Carolina and both of which star Virginia actors. MORNING SONG WAY with a largely Native American cast is the story of a little girl who witnesses a murder and is hidden up in the mountains of Virginia with her great uncle, a Native American Medicine Man. It is a very powerful film about the topic of cultural loss. MORNING SONG WAY has already been in film festivals in Los Angeles and New York and has won eleven awards so far including Best Dramatic Film at the Native American Film Festival in Columbia, South Carolina and four honorable mentions at the International Cherokee Film Festival sponsored by the Cherokee Nation of Oklahoma. It is mentioned in the March/April issue of NATIVE PEOPLES magazine, one of the largest Native American magazines in North America, Virginia actress Jennifer Redbird is from the area around Fries where most of the picture was filmed and Glenda Bean lives in the Brush Creek Community right on Brush Creek. Both of them star in the film. Bean is a Catawba/Cherokee Indian and Redbird is of white, Hispanic, and Ani-Stohini/Unami descent. Roanoke native Brian Hall also has a strong supporting role in the film. Although the movie will not be eligible for any awards at the festival since Drydock is one of the festival sponsors, it is hoped that the Premiere will help to promote the festival and help to bring celebrities in. Virginia actors Brian Hall and Chris Bookless also have a supporting role in the film. The movie also stars famous Native American Blues guitarist Elvus Kishketon, Jr., and Seminole/Creek Actor Jeff Anderson, both of Oklahoma and includes soundtrack music by Joseph “Z”, and Jerry Eaglefeather Monroe."

Another film, by Drydock, SPIES and MOLASSES, which completes filming this month also stars Glenda Bean and Brian Hall. It is a romantic comedy, spy, martial arts film and also stars Chippewa(Ojibway) Indians Brooke Hidde, and Dawn St. Marie. Atlanta celebrity and martial artist Jessica Vines also stars. The majority of the Drydock family of actors from both films will be in attendance at the festival along with personal friends of film Director Charles Howard Thomas and invited celebrities and guests.

There will be a red carpet in front of the theaters for all films which will premiere during the film festival and a chance for the press to shoot celebrities. After each premiere, there will also be a chance for festival goers to question the stars after the showing of the films."

Speaking of Fries, here's another Crooked Road music story, from Cox News Service.

I once asked the correct pronunciation of the name of the Town of Fries, and was told that it's Fries like French Fries in the summer and Freeze in the winter.